


fire lily

by faerialchemist



Series: zuko tries to give mai a fire lily [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Cross-Posted on Tumblr, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Insecurity, Puppy Love, Romance, Young!Maiko, azula is a lil manipulative, bc guess what mothertruckers zuko thought she was beautiful from day 1, pre-banishment maiko, this story is lowkey a giant FUCK YOU to anyone who's ever called mai ugly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:42:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26345803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faerialchemist/pseuds/faerialchemist
Summary: Zuko’s eyes widened, the blood draining from his face. Mai never cried. “What? What happened?!”“Oh, I don’t know,” Azula said, shrugging nonchalantly, though her eyes glinted with a malicious mirth. “But if I had to guess… Maybe it had something to do with the royal advisors talking about what a shame it is that someone as dull and plain as her is going to be the next Fire Lady of our great country -”Zuko didn’t wait for his sister to finish, turning on his heel and sprinting back down the hallway that led out of the palace and into the main courtyard.(Mai will always be his fire lily. If only Zuko knew how to tell her that. Young!Maiko fluff with a dash of hurt/comfort.)
Relationships: Azula & Zuko (Avatar), Mai & Zuko (Avatar), Mai/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: zuko tries to give mai a fire lily [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2097018
Comments: 28
Kudos: 196





	fire lily

_Only give a fire lily to someone you are willing to give your heart to_ , his mother had once told him. _Remember that there is no greater gift than your love_.

Today was the day. Zuko was sure of it. He was finally 13, which meant he was a young man in the eyes of the throne and - as the crown prince - he would at long last be introduced to the more current knowledge about ruling the Fire Nation. Like being allowed in the war room, and talking about how to conquer Ba Sing Se.

Unfortunately, it also meant he’d have to deal with courting from a bunch of stupid girls who didn’t care about him and just wanted to be Fire Lady. Ew. Was he allowed to reject them by setting his hand on fire whenever they tried to hold it?

Not that it mattered, at the end of the day. There was only one girl for him.

“Looking for Mai?”

Zuko turned around to see his sister leaning against a gold-adorned column, her arms crossed over her chest as she gave him her signature - and very, very annoying - smirk.

“Yes,” Zuko said, eyeing her suspiciously as a frown inched onto his lips. “How did you know?”

Azula laughed, twirling the hair that framed the right side of her face around her middle finger. “Don’t be ridiculous, Zuzu. Who _else_ would you be giving a fire lily to?”

Zuko flushed in embarrassment, immediately moving his hand that held the red flower - probably the same color his face was by now - behind his back. “No. What are you -”

“Please. You know you can’t lie to me, Zuko,” Azula interrupted, rolling her eyes. “You’re terrible at it in general, really.” She gestured vaguely to her left. “Last I saw Mai she was out crying by the turtleduck pond. Hope she didn’t fall in and drown.”

Zuko’s eyes widened, the blood draining from his face. Mai _never_ cried. “What? What happened?!”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Azula said, shrugging nonchalantly, though her eyes glinted with a malicious mirth. “But if I had to guess… Maybe it had something to do with the royal advisors talking about what a _shame_ it is that someone as dull and _plain_ as her is going to be the next Fire Lady of our great country -”

Zuko didn’t wait for his sister to finish, turning on his heel and sprinting back down the hallway that led out of the palace and into the main courtyard. _Azula always lies_ , but this time he knew she was telling the truth - of _course_ that would be the case the one time he’d ever _want_ her to lie.

How dare they talk about Mai like that?! Mai was - Mai was _beautiful_! Those stupid advisors were just too old and snooty to see how pretty she was. They’d never seen her throwing her knives, or watched her making fruit tarts with Ty Lee and Azula, or - or heard her laughing at his uncle’s bad jokes! What right did they have to call her _plain_?! She - She was the most beautiful, interesting girl in the world!

“Mai?” Zuko shouted, skidding to a stop as he reached the path lining the edge of the courtyard. “Mai, are you out here?”

No response.

He scanned the area, looking for any sign that his girlfriend might have been outside. She wasn’t by the pond, like Azula had said, and he couldn’t see her by the bench or under the pavilion or - _there_! He could see a familiar maroon ribbon peeking out behind the tree on the opposite side of the pond.

“Mai!” he called, sprinting across the courtyard and nearly tripping over a raised patch of grass. “Mai, are you -”

His voice vanished in his throat as he rounded the tree, his gaze falling on his girlfriend - had she always seemed so small? - who looked up at him from the ground with wide, red-rimmed eyes and tear-stained cheeks, clutching her knees tightly to her chest.

“Mai?” he whispered. She flinched at her name as if the word burned, turning her face away from him.

“Leave me alone,” she muttered, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. “I don’t want to be around anyone right now.”

“You never want to be around anyone,” Zuko said as he slowly lowered himself to sit on her right, leaving a few inches of space between them. He didn’t want to be too close and make her uncomfortable. “You hate people.” He gave her a small smile. “I like that about you. How you’re always honest.”

Mai sniffed in response, wiping her eyes again but still not looking at him.

Zuko hesitated, his hands tightly gripping the grass beneath him. “I…” He took a deep breath. “Azula told me what happened.”

_That_ got Mai’s attention, as she whipped around faster than lightning to stare at him in a mixture of shock and hurt and… Fear? Why would she be -

“Is that why you’re here?” Mai asked, her voice cracking. She winced, breaking eye contact with him.

Zuko hesitated again, but nodded. “Yes. I want to -”

Tears welled up in Mai’s eyes, and she bit her bottom lip as it began to quiver. “Fine. Get it over with already!”

Panic rose in Zuko’s chest as he watched his girlfriend try not to cry, and he hastily shook his head in confusion. “Wait, what? What are you talking about? What’s wrong?”

“Azula -” Mai flinched as a half-sob slipped out, and it took all of Zuko’s willpower to stop himself from pulling her into the tightest hug then and there. “Azula said that after - after you heard what the advisors thought about me you were - you were going to break up with me -”

Something inside of Zuko snapped. “She _what_?!” he shouted angrily, fire bursting out of his hands and searing the grass beneath his fists. “Why the hell would she -”

“I _know_ I’m not as pretty as her and Ty Lee,” Mai continued, clamping her hands over her ears and burying her face in her knees, “and I know that I’m too tall and I don’t have any - any _curves_ or whatever, and I _know_ that the Fire Lady is supposed to be beautiful and regal -”

“You _are_ beautiful!” Zuko interrupted, turning so he was facing her directly. Agni, he felt like he was going to _explode_. How dare anyone make Mai feel so bad about herself?! “I don’t care what those stupid old men think! Or Azula!” Why would his sister have said something so cruel to Mai? They were supposed to be _friends_! “They’re all wrong. You _are_ beautiful, Mai. And you’ll be the prettiest Fire Lady in history.”

Mai shook her head, wiping her eyes again. “You’re lying.”

“I’m _not_ lying!” he argued, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not like Azula. I’ll never lie to you. You’re really, _really_ beautiful, Mai. Your hair is - it’s so pretty and shiny and smooth, and - and you look really cute when you smile, plus red looks _super_ good on you, especially compared to other Fire Nation girls.” He paused before hastily adding, “And - And you’re very beautiful on the inside, too! Like how you’re so good at knife-throwing!” He didn’t want her to think he _only_ cared about her appearance.

Mai sniffed, her face dusted with a pale blush several shades lighter than the maroon ribbons tied in her hair. “Really?”

Zuko nodded eagerly. “Of course! You’re the most beautiful girl I know.” And as crown prince, he’d been forced to meet with a lot of girls over the years. Most of whom were obnoxious and irritating.

Mai hesitated, then turned to throw her arms around him, nearly knocking him over as she did so. She buried her face into his shoulder. “I’m sorry you found me like this,” she whispered, her voice muffled by his clothes. “My mother says I’m not supposed to get upset in front of other people.”

Zuko didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around her in response, pressing a tiny kiss to the top of her head before he could lose his nerve. “I don’t care what your mom says. You can be upset in front of me.” He tightened the hug, his cheek squished against her hair. “I’m just glad you aren’t upset anymore.”

They held each other a little while longer, their racing heartbeats at last slowing down as the world stood silent, calm, tranquil around them.

Mai was the one to pull away, wiping her eyes a final time. She gave him a tiny smile. “Thank you, Zuko.” She then pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, and Zuko could feel his heartbeat skyrocketing right back up to where it had been only seconds earlier, though this time for a much different reason.

“Anytime,” he managed to say, returning her smile with a flustered, bashful one of his own. His eyes then widened as he remembered the reason he’d wanted to see his girlfriend in the first place, before he’d run into Azula. “Mai, I -”

He cut himself off as he looked down at his right hand, only to see a pile of ash beneath his palm that had once been a beautiful, radiant fire lily.

_Oh, no_. He must have accidentally burned it when he’d heard that Azula - Agni, his sister was such a _jerk_ \- had told Mai he was going to break up with her.

Mai tilted her head. “Is something wrong?”

Zuko swallowed the lump rising in his throat. It was okay. There would be more fire lilies in their future. He was sure of it. “No. Nothing’s wrong. I…” He forced a smile onto his lips. “I was just wondering if you wanted to get some fruit tarts with me?”

Mai’s eyes lit up at the mention of her favorite dessert, and she beamed at Zuko before immediately trying to mask her excitement with a calm, collected expression. She only partially succeeded. “Yes. I would love to.”

And when Mai intertwined their fingers as they headed back inside the palace, his girlfriend complaining all the while about a terrible cherry fruit tart her parents had once given her that she _never_ wanted to taste again, Zuko found his forced smile rapidly turning real as he soon became lost in her presence - the dryness of her tone, the warmth of her hand in his, the spark of mischief always dancing in her eyes.

He couldn’t help it. Mai was… so, _so_ beautiful.

(His fire lily.)


End file.
